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IDF looks to Bible to prepare for future threats

(Photo: IDF)
By Ahuva Balofsky
“And the LORD said unto Gideon: ‘The people that are with thee are too many for Me to give the Midianites into their hand, lest Israel vaunt themselves against Me, saying: mine own hand hath saved me…’” (Judges 7:2)

The Israeli Defense Forces is preparing for a possible future which includes a nuclear-developing Iran, a senior defense source told The Jerusalem Post. According to the paper, the IDF must assume the worst to properly reshape the military, improve training and cut costs.

New IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Gadi Eisenkot and a team of military planners spent four years developing what they have termed the “Gideon Plan” for streamlining the IDF over the next several years.

It calls for significantly increasing the power of wartime multi-arena combat divisions; restructuring the army to create specialized brigades and battalions that focus exclusively on border security, leaving the main fighting to the divisions; and improving weapons and training.

The Gideon Plan was publicized Monday, ahead of the results of the Locker Commission, which calls for significant reductions in the Israeli army’s operating budget. The Locker commission, ordered by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to examine the military budget and headed by Major General (Res.) Yohanan Locker, has received considerable criticism from defense officials, who claim it undermines the army and delegitimizes career officers.